ORGANIZATION
USAID
MOMENTUM
YEAR PUBLISHED
2024
DESCRIPTION
COUNSELING, INFORMED CONSENT, AND DEBRIEFING (CCD) are important aspects of respectful maternity care (RMC) and medical ethics. Cesarean section (CS) is one of the most performed surgical procedures in the world. RMC remains important even when maternity care becomes surgical. To better understand attitudes, preferences, and practices related to CCD in the context of both emergency and non-emergency surgical obstetric care, the MOMENTUM Safe Surgery in Family Planning and Obstetrics project * conducted a mixed methods research study (including interviews, focus group discussions, observations, and record reviews) in four health facilities in Ebonyi and Sokoto States in Nigeria, between November 2022 and March 2023.
Key Findings:
- Awareness of CS is high in the community, but acceptance varies.
- Stigma can impact whether women seek or provide consent for CS and are able to access the care they need.
- Examples of stigma include beliefs that a woman who delivers through CS:
- Is not as strong as other women;
- Wants to waste her husband’s money;
- Has had her prayers for an easy pregnancy go unanswered, is being spiritually punished.
- Communities also report fear of death from CS.